Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) announced today the reflagging of the former Ramada Plaza in Houston, Texas as the new Four Points by Sheraton Houston Southwest. Santa Ana, CA.-based Khanna Enterprises, which owns and operates hotels in both southern California and London, England, has selected Starwood to franchise the property as a Four Points by Sheraton, the hotel company`s mid-priced brand.

The 216-room Four Points by Sheraton Houston Southwest is conveniently located off Interstate 59 at Kirby Drive, in close proximity to the Galleria, Downtown, Texas Medical Center, Astrodome and Houston Hobby Airport. The hotel underwent a $6.5 million renovation in 1999, prior to its conversion to Doubletree Club. It has been a Ramada Plaza for the last year.

Other significant features and guest amenities of the hotel include a fitness facility and outdoor pool, Au Bon Pain Bakery Cafe, plus high-speed Internet access in all guestrooms and meeting rooms. The Au Bon Pain Bakery Cafe offers a menu that provides breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus room service. The hotel offers 2,400 square feet of meeting space, including a 1,890 square-foot ballroom and a 464 square-foot meeting room.

“The hotel in Houston is an important addition to the Four Points by Sheraton brand, which is a major destination for both the business and leisure traveler,” said Hoyt Harper, the brand`s senior vice president.

Starwood has six other properties located in the Houston area, including the Sheraton Suites Houston, Sheraton Houston Brookhollow Hotel, Sheraton North Houston Hotel at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, The Westin Oaks, The Westin Galleria and The St. Regis, Houston.

Four Points by Sheraton hotels are located primarily at airports, in mid-sized cities, leisure destinations, and business and commercial centers on the perimeters of major metropolitan areas. Catering to business and leisure travelers as well as meeting planners seeking a mid-priced, full service quality product, all hotels feature an on-premise restaurant and lounge serving three meals a day; room service with a 30-minute guarantee; fitness facility; and business services and meeting space with full catering facilities. Guest rooms are spacious with a comfortable workspace and two telephones with dataport and additional comforts sought after by business and leisure travelers today. Other guest services include same-day laundry and dry cleaning service and delivery.

Four Points by Sheraton, with more than 150 properties in 16 countries is owned by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) and was voted the number one mid-priced hotel brand two years in a row by Business Travel News` “Annual U.S. Hotel Chain Survey.” Starwood Hotels & Resorts is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with more than 740 properties in more than 80 countries and 105,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. With internationally renowned brands, Starwood is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels and resorts including: St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, Sheraton, Westin, Four Points by Sheraton, W brands, as well as Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts. For more information, please visit www.starwood.com

Please contact Starwood`s new, toll-free media hotline at (866) 4-STAR-PR (866-478-2777) for photography or additional information.

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